Dania V

this book destroyed me and i adored every second of it its absorbed my every thought and feeling im a wreck everyone needs to read this

I feel very conflicted about this book, as I had multiple issues with it, and I'm going to start with the negative. I absolutely despise Odysseus. He is a terrible person that gets all of his comrades killed, and all of their "Trials and tribulations" were completely, and entirely, avoidable. He has a faithful wife that's loyal and loves him, and he proceeds to sleep with a nymph multiple times, but I guess it doesn't count because hE dOeSn'T lOvE cAlYpSo!!1!1! spare me. Odysseus is a terrible person that deserved to die on that island. However, I recognize that he is a complex character. He is clearly cunning. But he's stupidly bold, and it almost gets him killed a myriad of times. I did like having a bad person as a lead, but he didn't deserve the happy ending he got. I would have given the book 2 stars if it weren't for its redeemable qualities, such as how it is a beautifully written. The way everything is described is vivid and expressive, and I love books that do that. I also love mythology, and I enjoyed reading about it. (Even when the main character is an idiot) Telemachus, Penelope and Athena are all brilliant characters, even Calypso. Calypso is flawed, but it adds depth to her character, and her speech about Zeus and mortal love had some truth to it. Penelope's love for Odysseus is rather bittersweet, because Odysseus doesn't deserve her undying devotion. She is one of the best characters as well, since loving Odysseus isn't her only quality. She's a great mother, she's a loyal wife, she's strong and refuses to remarry, and she's very cunning as well. All of these things salvaged the book from making me give it a 2 star review, and I would definitely recommend it.

This book was a pleasant surprise, I enjoyed it a lot. Montag is a product of his environment, and as the book goes on you see how if we were in the same situation, we would think and act the same way Montag did. From the brilliant quotes, the characters, I loved this book. The only reason I am not giving it 5 stars is because we are left with a lot of unanswered questions, but it is a brilliant and thought-provoking nonetheless.

I expected more, but the book is just boring and drags on. I had to force myself to finish it. Gene is entitled, selfish, cowardly, and unlikeable. He's obsessed with his best friend Finny but can't even bring himself to tell him that he cares about him, and when he can't talk to him about the problems in their relationship he blames Finny for all of the issues they have. It is hinted that Gene is in love with Finny, but the author chooses to completely glaze over that instead of using it to make us at feel pity or sympathy towards Gene. Which by the way, I have none. The end of the book feels incomplete and disappointing because Gene has no growth or retribution, so it's a boring end to a disappointing story.